Pretty Pumpkins

Here's inspiration for your holiday decorating.  You can also check out last year's Autumn Decor post for more great pictures.

Southern Living

Martha Stewart

Southern Living

Martha Stewart

Southern Living

Sunset

Martha Stewart

Better Homes and Gardens

Sunset

Martha Stewart

Recent Project: Traditional Updated

For a recent project, my client and I made some relatively small changes that made a big impact to several rooms in her home.   I couldn't wait to see her home today and take all these pictures of the transformation.   If you like before and after shots, you'll enjoy these pictures!  Click on the pictures to enlarge...

My client did have some wonderful furniture and accessories to start with.  In fact, I convinced her a new sofa was not needed.  It was in great shape and to replace it with something of equal quality would have cost a lot more money then to reupholster.   The picture above is an "AFTER" shot.  The rug, drapery, and artwork were to stay.  We reupholstered the couch with a soft chenille that had a subtle geometric pattern, added some pillows, found coffee tables on Craig's List and had them repainted, added a mirror to the top of the side table and found a new shade for the lamp!

Below are the "BEFORE" pictures.  Flower fabric on couch...gone!  Large glass coffee table with sharp corners...gone!  Lamp shade too big for the lamp...gone!

Here's a "BEFORE" picture of the coffee tables before they were painted.  Great design but the orange had to go...

So much better.  My client loves animal prints so we added some cheetah pillows too! 

On the opposite wall from the couch we wanted to create a seating area plus add a gallery of photographs showcasing all the great places my client has traveled too around the world.  Below we started to map out where to place the photos.  

Below is the finished result.  The white floral fabric on the chair was replaced with a cool chevron fabric!  A pillow with chevron fabric was added to the english regency chair but we were careful not to detract from the chair's pretty wood details.  The gallery is complete.  Her pictures of the far east are amazing!

Below is a close up of the chevron fabric on the queen anne chair.  The pillow was made with the couch fabric.  If you look close, you can see the geometric design.  My upholsterer did a great job.  

Here's a "BEFORE" picture with piano in the corner.  We centered it on the far wall which made for a better focal point.

Here's the "AFTER" picture.  We relocated artwork to above the piano and added some pretty accessories.  The piano bench was recovered in cheetah fabric which will hid more then the previous white fabric.  

My client converted her TV cabinet into a bar.  She added a mirror to the back of the cabinet which really opens up the space. Very cool.

 

Now for the dining room....  Here's an "AFTER" picture (sorry... no "before" pics for this room).  A shiny brass chandelier was replaced with this wood ball and bronze chandelier.  The dining room chairs were recovered in a mini chevron fabric.  Floral print drapery panels were added.

Artwork and accessories were rearranged...

A view of the dining room from the kitchen...

In the kitchen, glass accent tile was added throughout.  It transformed the look of the kitchen...

Here's another picture of the tile.  It's even prettier in person!

In the master bedroom, this window needed some help.  Here's the "BEFORE" picture.

Here's the "AFTER" picture.  A custom flat roman shade was made of white linen with a chocolate brown linen banding.    

Traditional furniture with classic details never go out of style!  As long as you buy good quality furniture to begin with you can refresh them over the years with fabric and paint and make them look current.

I'm thrilled with how everything turned out for this project but, more importantly, my client loves the results.

It was a good day!

Steve Jobs and "Good Taste"

Before my thoughts on Steve Jobs and taste...a short note to my email subscribers.  When you receive your email, please click on the title of my post to see the entire post.  This link will bring you to my blog website.  Please email me if you have any questions.

This is really going to show my age but my first experience with a Mac was in college.  The "computer room" had a PC side and a Mac side.  I choose the PC side so used PCs until my first job required I use a Mac.  I had to pull my Mac on a luggage cart to visit clients!  Since then I've never been able to go back to the PC (at least personally).  Today, I'm a proud owner of a iphone, ipad and MacBook Pro, which I now carry to client meetings in a purse!

Over the past 24 hours, I've learned how important "taste" was to Steve Jobs.  According to the NY Times, he used the word "taste" frequently.  He said, "Great products were a triumph of taste...of trying to expose yourself to the best things humans have done and then trying to bring those things into what you are doing."   He was a marketing genius.  He was able to simplify complex, highly engineered products into easy-to-use products that were simply beautiful.

I do believe "taste" is very subjective.  But I also believe to have "good taste", whether it be in music, fashion, or interior design, you need to experience lots of great music, fashion or interior design. You need to study the details and fine tune your senses for what works or doesn't work.    The people in my life who I consider to have great taste are passionate about their pursuits and continue to improve upon their great taste with more experience.

In honor of  Steve Jobs, below I've included pictures of interiors, all with the iconic "mac".  Enjoy!

Mark Cravotta

Feldman Architecture

Urban Homes, NY

Red Jet Whistle

Frisson

Valerie Pasquiou

If you would like help turning your home into one you love, please contact me about design services.

Have a great weekend!